


Like Father, Like Son

by TheChocoChick



Category: Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dad Ardyn, Original Character(s), Tests
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-15
Updated: 2019-01-15
Packaged: 2019-10-10 18:04:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,304
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17430854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheChocoChick/pseuds/TheChocoChick
Summary: Ardyn Izunia was not a stupid man, not by a long shot. He never planned to just waltz right into power without Aldercapt giving him a test or two, but this.... This was not the kind of test he'd been expecting.(Commission)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work commissioned by Rylee V. with the following prompt:
> 
> "Ardyn has to prove he can fake humanity by taking care of a child for an extended period of time, but the kid he gets saddled with isn't normal either. Bonus points if you can work in that the kid knows he's the Accursed and is sassy about it."
> 
> Rylee, I hope you enjoy this first part of your fic, thanks for the commission!

     Ardyn Izunia was not a stupid man, not by a long shot. He never planned to just waltz right into power without Aldercapt giving him a test or two, but this... This was not the kind of test he'd been expecting.

     The council sat in their chairs atop the steps, watching intently as their emperor continued to explain the task he had in mind. Some who knew what he was failed to contain their smug snickering, others shook their heads at the odd demand.

     "Do you understand?" Aldercapt finished, fixing his gaze on the immortal.

     "If that is what you wish, Your Majesty, then that is what shall be done." Ardyn swept a bow, even as his displeasure churned in the pit of his stomach.

     "Very well," the emperor smirked from his throne. "Let it be known that from the start of next week to a year and a day hence you, Ardyn Izunia, will be tasked with caring for a ward of the state to determine your fitness for placement as Chancellor of Niffleheim."

\--

     Ardyn found himself dreading every knock that came on his door for the next seven days. Aldercapt could easily decide not to wait and just drop the ward into his lap at any time, and the would-be Chancellor found he was spooked that a nurse with a child would arrive around any corner.

     It didn't help that he had no idea where to keep the little nuisance; the home he'd been given in Gralea left much to be desired given he never actually used it. For the sake of appearance though, it would seem he'd have to start factoring a commute into his daily activities.

     What a mess. What an outright mess this was going to be. The demons grumbled inside, they themselves murmuring about simply eating the thing and being done with it. Tempting, assuredly, but not viable. The whole point was to prove he could control himself and act with a farce of empathy enough to sate the people. Manipulation came easy to him, this would simply be a small, boring inconvenience in the long run.

     And what a long run he'd had...

     Two thousand years of thinking, begging, and breaking under the restraint of bondage with the unholy hordes incarnate did things to a man. He'd waited for eons to get this far- he could wait another year and a day.

\--

     It was smaller than he'd been expecting. The boy was easily swamped by the massive wingbacked chair in his office's sitting area as it's now former nurse flittered about with it's few meager belongings.

     It was a quiet thing. It couldn't be more than ten, sat still, hands in its lap and eyes to the floor, and didn't fidgit too often. Perfect. The less Ardyn had to play entertainer, the better. Let the thing amuse itself.

     Once it's few small bags had been arranged by the door, the nurse curtsied and took the papers officiating his guardianship.

     This thing was his now.

\--

     The drive to the house wasn't entirely awful. The weather was nice for once, so he left the car with the hood down as they wound their way through the bleak city towards the resident he'd only stepped foot in once or twice.

     He'd coughed out a small fortune for someone to come out and make it livable. The designer assured him it was something that would look nice and still reflect his "unique personality" with a space for the pest in the passenger seat.

     Said pest seemed content to look out the window, watching as skyscrapers transitioned to houses, and then again to the forests outside the limits of Gralea. There was a slight frown to his lips and a furrow in his brow, leading the driver to assume he didn't like the change of pace.

     After half an hour they finally pulled up to the gate of the property. The estate sat just outside the city, a few acres large, encased by old stone walls and a wrought iron gate that opened with a push of a button.

     He was pleased to see the grass had been cut and the outside of the house looked in good shape, a tasteful string of ivy allowed to remain and cling to one corner of the building.

     He parked at the front of the circle drive, putting the roof up on the car and grabbing the bags from the trunk before heading inside, the cretin following softly behind. He dropped the bags by the door to look about. The designer really had picked out a wonderful way to go with things, color him pleased. The little beasty chose to stay by the door.

     "What's your name, child?" Ardyn asked after a few moments of tense silence.

     "I don't have a proper one, Sir," the boy answered. "Most of my life's been spent cared for by the priests, and they ain't fond of giving names, but I usually answer to Michael."

     "Michael," he hummed. "My name is Ardyn Izunia. I'm to take care of you for a while."

     Yes sir, I've been told about it."

     "So you understand you won't be seeing your friends for a while, yes?"

     "I don't have any friends, Sir. I'm told that's one of the main reasons they picked me."

     "Because you're extra lonesome?"

     "Because they say you're dangerous." And for the first time, the thing looked up and locked eyes with the immortal. "And because you're dangerous, the emperor thinks I would be a good match. And nobody would miss me if I suddenly ain't around anymore."

     "Is that so?" He could feel the demons spike in his core, starting to churn in time with his irritation. The boy wanted to play wit? Then let them play. "And why, pray tell, would you be a good match?"

     "It's only fair that a man who's not quite human should be paired with a boy who's not quite normal."

     "Ah, so they told you that little tidbit," Ardyn mused, settling himself in one of the chairs in the front room and crossing his legs.

     "I'm going into a situation where I could get murdered by demons at any second. I deserve to know that I'll be in danger."

     "You're awfully well thought out for a child," Ardyn remarked.

     "Yeah, I suppose. Maybe that's why the other kids didn't like me- I learned really fast to not be stupid."

     "You're knowingly walking into a life with a demon at the center, and you say that's not stupid?"

     "Demons don't really concern me," the child said, stretching before moving to pick up his bags from where Ardyn had left them. "The Emperor wants to know if you can play nice, I'm the one who's supposed to tell him."

     "That doesn't negate the danger."

     "Like I said Sir, demons don't bother me. And where there is an opportunity, there is a danger."

     Well, this was certainly playing out differently than he'd been expecting. Behind meek and humble posture hid a behemoth who'd waited until they were alone to show itself.

     "What opportunities are you thinking you'll find here?"

     "If we both make it the year, then we both get what we want. You'll be Chancellor, and I'll be left to do whatever I want on the Emperor's dime."

     "And here I thought you be joining me with childlike wonder of finally having a family."

     "That'd go over swell. 'Hi my name is Michael and my foster dad is the herald of the end of times'. What a great opener."

     Ardyn couldn't stop the smirk tugging on his lips as the thing went to find it's room upstairs. Maybe a brat with more than two brain cells wouldn't be such a bore after all...


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rylee's request for the second chapter:
> 
> "They bicker a lot, but when Ardyn misses something important and upsets the kid, they bond over how Ardyn became the Accursed. Bonus if you can work in something about Noctis."
> 
> This part is a bit longer, I hope you enjoy!

            The first week went well, all things considered. He let himself tone down some of the flamboyant charades he played, they were living under the same roof, after all, no need to be overly theatrical. Ardyn factored an extra hour of driving into his schedule, dropping the emperor’s pet off at a new public school along the way and picking it up after work. He spent the required hour every day to spend “quality time” with it, logging the times into his phone like he was supposed to. The twerp was content to stay in its room the rest of the time.

            It was after that when things started to get difficult.

            Apparently the public schools were a breeding ground for viruses this time of year, and the little fool had the audacity to go and get sick, and _apparently_ leaving a ten-year-old with a fever at home alone was frowned upon.  So on the second day, Ardyn got to call the school _and_ the office, stating that neither Michael nor himself would be going anywhere until it was cleared up.

            “You're lucky I was a healer,” Ardyn said as the fever carried into a third and fourth day. “Most people from my age would get impatient and leave you to die.”

            “Gee, I feel so much better,” the boy had snarked between coughs. “The _one_ two-thousand-year-old geezer is taking care of me instead of all his dead friends.”

            Anger flared behind Ardyn’s eyes at that, his vision going dark at the edges as a hint of his nature crept to the surface. Luckily, the boy didn’t seem to notice as he gulped down a fresh cup of water.

            “Maybe you’ve caught the scourge,” the immortal teased. “Serves you right for walking into this yourself.”

            “I can’t catch the scourge, idiot,” the child huffed, curling up on the couch again.

            “Yet another reason why you were the prime child to put me with,” he sighed. “A punishment in and of itself.”

            The fever lasted a week, which was full of bickering, demands for soup, and a severe strain on Ardyn’s fraying patience. But, as all things eventually do, it passed.

            The twat went back to school, and Ardyn went back to work to find a massive stack of papers on his desk that Bethsidia needed him to review. No rest for the weary…

            On the way home that day they stopped by the store, Ardyn purchasing a bag and tossing it into the youth’s lap.

            “No more sick days,” he said, pulling out onto the street as the boy looked over the multivitamins and dutifully took a dose.

\---

            “Did Solheim engineers really know how to fly?”

            The question came out of the blue one night as they were having dinner. Well, ‘they’ wasn’t quite the word to use. Michael was having dinner, and Ardyn, having no need to eat, was sitting at the table with him as part of their bonding time.

            “What?”

            “Solheim,” the pest repeated around a mouth of carrots. “My history teacher said they knew how to fly. Is that true?”

            “You’ve heard of magitech, yes?” Ardyn responded.

            “The thing that the government is trying to develop?”

            “Re-develop would be the better word,” Ardyn said, setting down his pen and paperwork. “Solheim created it first, and the knowledge of how it works was lost in the Great War. They’re just now getting back around to it. But yes, we were able to fly.”

            “Is that what you do? Teach them how it works?”

            He flicked his gaze up from the manifest he was skimming for a moment before resuming his work. “In part. I can’t tell you the rest though. Classified, and all that.”

            “I’m allowed to know you're evil incarnate and running for office, but you won’t tell me what you do at work?”

            “Evil, my boy, is something you’ll quickly find is a matter of perspective.”

            “You’re literally a skin bag full of demons.”

            “And this skin bag full of demons is trying to get his paperwork done before a meeting with the science department tomorrow, so pipe down and eat your dinner.”

\---

            “There is no way I’m wearing that,” the boy pouted, tossing the garb onto his bed.

            “You _will_ wear it, and you’ll act like you’re proud to,” Ardyn retorted, pulling the child into a chair so he could tame the ever-growing strands of chestnut hair into something presentable. He’d call a barber and make an appointment for him tomorrow. “Emperor Aldercapt sent that outfit specifically for you to wear tonight and you aren’t going to insult him by going in your jeans and a sweatshirt.”

            “I can do my own hair,” Michael complained, swatting at the brush.

            “Not tonight, you can’t. If you want to be taken seriously, then you need it styled back.”

            “You don’t style yours any different than normal!”

            “Yes, well _I_ don’t have to worry about anyone’s opinions. Most of the people we will see tonight know me for what I am. You, on the other hand, still need to make a good impression.”

            “But I don’t want to wear the stupid suit or slick back my hair!” The pout that Ardyn had gotten quite used to returns. “It's not like you actually care about going to dinner anyway. You don’t even eat!”

            “Eating is not the point, boy,” he sighed. “We’re going to be watched tonight. They’re evaluating us.”

            “I’m not dead yet- evaluation passed.”

            “But you have to seem like you’re enjoying yourself,” Ardyn continued, making eye contact through the mirror. “The better we sell this, the easier it is going to be for us to get what we want.”

            “Ugh, fine. If the emperor asks though, I’m telling him all the stuff you do that’s stupid.”

            “I have been a model foster parent, young man.”

            “You left me hanging off the side of the roof not two days ago.”

            “And are you going to get up on the roof without supervision and protection again?”

            “…”

            “Case and point, my boy. Now get dressed.”

\---

            “Smile, twat,” Ardyn hissed under his breath as they sauntered into the ballroom. The boy plastered a weak grin on his lips, clearly uncomfortable with his hair brushed back and in the white and grey cadet uniform.

            He could see Ledolas Aldercapt sitting in the chair atop the dais across the room, watching as the pair of not-normal’s mixed with his other guests for the evening.  There was music and dancing, a heavy table laden with food off to one side, and a gaggle of girls who followed his pain of a ward around the ballroom all night begging for a turn around the floor.

            When people asked how the fostering was going, the flowery responses poured out. Oh, Michael was just such a dear. So lovely to have around the house. A pity they had school and work to take them apart. They were planning a vacation to go somewhere relaxing and spend quality time together. How could it have already been three months?

            The words tasted like sawdust in his mouth. If he had to be any more isolated with that little brat more than he already was, he just might snap. While a place in Nifelhiem’s council would make his plan significantly easier, it wasn’t a requirement for the revenge he had in mind.

            All in all, the party was a bore. Until, that was, he saw the emperor say something to one of his assistants and disappear into the small conference room behind the dais, a uniformed man soon following with Michael in tow.

            The prat didn’t come back out for quite some time, and when he did, at last, emerge, he immediately excused himself and went to the balcony. A hand on his shoulder and a whisper to his ear had the Accursed being led in for his own meeting with the monarch.

\---

            Ardyn fumed the whole way home after the ball had ended. The _insolence_! The downright _disrespect!_ The little fury-bringing, back talking, overly-wizened, halfwit sat smugly in the passenger seat, his hair a mess and the jacket of his new uniform flung haphazardly into the back seat.

            “Something the matter, sir?” The twat smiled innocently as they pulled around the drive, looking as simple as the day they’d first met nearly three months ago.

            “Go to your room,” Ardyn hissed back, on the verge of something very unpleasant.

            “But sir-”

            “I said, _go to your room!”_

            The boy gasped as his voice warped, the harsh edge of the demons within bleeding out in the sound and his appearance. The beasts within were quaking, a chorus of ‘ _hurt, maim, **kill** ’_ ranting through his head as he lost the firm grip he kept on control.

            “ _Now,”_ Ardyn growled.

            The child backed away slowly, never taking his gaze off the black ichor dripping down as he went inside before the door closed softly and locked with a click.

            Only once the boy was out of direct harm’s way did Ardyn allow the demons to fling themselves to frenzy.

\---

            There was a piece of wood peeking out from the gap under Michael’s bedroom door when he finally calmed down enough to go back to the house. Blue paint traced a design mostly concealed on the other side.

            “A purity rune, really?” he deadpanned as he opened the door to see the twerp sitting with his knees pulled up on the bed. “You realize only someone with the blood of an Orac- ah!”

            A sharp sting raced through his leg as he moved to step over the homemade haven rune, the paint taking on a glow with the smell of ozone.

            “Fun fact- Teva Nox Fleuret, the monarch before Sylvia Nox Fleuret, had a bastard son. The priests are pretty sure that was me. I’m no Oracle, but I can keep you out of my room for as long as I want. I was tempted to put it on the front door too, but I ran out of paint.”

            “You little sh- ugh! That hurt!”

            “Yeah, that’s kinda the point,” he sighed, flopping back on the bed. “I’ve been here, in my room, waiting for you to decide to come and kill me all night. I wasn’t going to take the chance.”

            “It was never my intention to kill you, you idiot.”

            “Eh, you looked pretty bloodthirsty in the driveway.”

            “Which is _why_ I told you to go to your room,” Ardyn explained. “I knew it was coming up and you needed to not be there when it broke.”

            “Like you’d feel bad if you’d killed me anyway.”

            “Now what is that supposed to mean?”

            “You don’t even like me!” the boy yelled sitting up again. “You just want to use me, like you use everyone. There isn’t a single kind, helpful, or genuine bone in your body!”

            “What would you know about deceit, boy? You're _ten_.” Irritation, yet again.

            “I’m _eleven_! Which you would have known if you’d actually bothered to read any of the papers they gave you about me! Do you want to know why Aldercapt reamed you? That was my six-damned birthday party we went to and you didn’t even know it! Because you. Don’t. Care.”

            “Unimportant-“

            “Unimportant?” the child interrupted. “Unimportant?! I’m not the one who’s supposed to be selling their act, _Accursed_. I’m supposed to act like myself and see if _you_ can pretend to be human.” He clambered off the bed, pulling the insert out of the doorway and flinging it into the hall where it bounced down the stairs before he returned to his bed. “Go ahead. Do it, kill me. It's not like anyone would actually _care_.”

            And with the way his voice broke on the last word, Ardyn could see past his frustrations to know the situation for what it was. This act of selfish, cruel betrayal that incited such anger was a cry for help- for attention. And now this- the act of a child offering himself up for death because he genuinely believed that no one loved him…

            There were moments, Ardyn remembered, where they didn’t hate each other. The night at the table, talking about magitech… discussing good novels for his book reports… even tonight, getting ready… they reminded him of something else, something he thought he’d left behind a very long time ago.

            Something that was enough to pull him to the bed and place a hesitant hand on the head of a weeping boy.

            “You are painfully annoying at times, and I don’t always understand the vernacular you kids use nowadays which is irritating, but… I’m not going to hurt you, Michael,” he said softly, noticing how the boy stiffened at the use of his name, the first time Ardyn had ever addressed him by it. “I don’t _want_ to hurt you.”

            “You almost ate me,” the boy sniffled. “I could tell you wanted to.”

            “There is a difference between myself and my demons,” Ardyn corrected gently. “They want to kill everyone. I just want this all to end.”

            “So you do want to ruin the world.”

            “No,” he chuckled. “I don’t want to end the world. I want _myself_ to end. I’ve been here too long. It hurts too much. I’m apart from my family too, you know.”

            “You had a family?” Hazel eyes peeked up from the tear-stained sheets.

            “Yes, I had my parents, and my brother too. Although, I don’t know if I miss him or hate him more.”

            “How come?”

            “Well, it _is_ his fault I ended up like this. I was human once, wanted human things… he took that away from me.”

            “How?”

            And so, bathed in the moon of his birthday night, a boy heard firsthand the tale of how a wandering king and healer fell from grace, neither hearing the news until the next morning that the King of Lucis would finally celebrate the birth of a son.


	3. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The conclusion of Rylee's fic! Enjoy!

            “Did you hear about Queen Aulea?” the boy asked as he climbed into the car the following Monday. “Our government teacher told us she’s given birth to an heir. They were expecting a girl, but apparently, she’s had a son.”

            “Yes, the Emperor went on quite a tirade about it in today’s meetings,” Ardyn hummed.

            “What does that mean for you? As in, uh, you know,” he leaned in. “With the whole Accursed thing?”

            “There have been one hundred and twelve Kings of Lucis since my brother,” Ardyn sighed. “Thus far none of them have been overly promising.”

            “But what if Prince Noctis _is_ the King of Kings? What then?”

            “Then somewhere in the next fifteen to eighty years, I will, at last, get some Gods-damned peace and quiet.”

            The boy- Michael, he corrected himself- snickered before sobering.

            “Do you really want to die, Ardyn?” A lonely look passed over his features as the Immortal Accursed elected not to answer.

\--

            Days turned into weeks of the pair in their rhythm. However, something was changing. Maybe it was the constant contact, or maybe it was just the effect the former-twerp had on him. But it was happening all the same. All those little things that grated on Ardyn’s nerves slowly shifted, going from irritants to defining traits of the boy. The harsh feeling of ‘boy’, ‘nuisance’, and ‘prat’ were replaced by the warm thought of ‘Michael’. There was a little tug, somewhere inside him, that brought an ease to his aches and pains. It showed up when he sat at the table and helped with his math homework, or when he’d seen a candid photo of them in the car and had it put in a frame on his desk. It showed up when he found a copy of the play _Of Astrals and Men_ with all of the lead male’s lines highlighted.

            But it showed up the most, like a sunburst in the middle of the blackest night, yearning for release, in the almost-slips of the tongue, where Ardyn would speak to his co-workers and wish to call the boy his child.

\--

            “We’re going to the circus,” Ardyn announced out of the blue a few weeks later, earning a surprised look from the child. “I know you were upset that you missed the one that came to your school to perform while you were sick, and won’t be able to go the next time.”

            “That was months ago, Ardyn. Why would you want to take me now?”

            “Kids like circuses. If we go then it will be seen as me catering to your whimsical childish nature. Unless you’d rather not?”

            “Oh no, I do,” Michael said animatedly, his homework forgotten on the table in front of him. “When would we go?”

            “Right now, if you’d like,” Ardyn hummed, wrapping his favored scarf around his neck. “One’s here in Gralea, tonight only, so it’s the opportune time.”

            “But my homework…”

            “I’ll help you finish it when we get back.”

            “Wait… Caliver’s and Catet’s Circus isn’t coming to Gralea for another week! And you already said I wasn’t allowed to go with my classmates because we had a dinner with the generals that night.”

            “Did I say we were going to Caliver’s? You said you wanted to see the circus, so I’m taking you to one.”

            “There aren’t any other circuses in town.”

            “Now, _my boy_ , who would I be if I couldn’t pull a few strings to entertain my child for one evening?”

            “Oh, uh…” the youth pulled a face, quickly ducking his head to hide from the gaze of his current guardian.

            “Now what’s that for? Are you embarrassed that I’ve used my influence for your benefit?” Ardyn laughed.

            “No, I’m grateful you’d bother, really I am, It’s just…”

            “Just what, child?”

            “You’ve never called me _your_ child before.”

            “Well,” Ardyn started. He had claimed the child, hadn’t he? “Perhaps my paternal instincts are kicking in at long last.”

            “Maybe you’re just old and senile,” the kid teased, earning a muss of the hair, of which he complained thoroughly on the way to the car.

\--

            “I thought you said we were going to a circus,” Michael said, looking up at the imposing silhouette of the research facility in the twilight.

            “And we are,” Ardyn confirmed, opening the door for the child to get out of the car. “A very special kind of circus, the likes of which you are the sole recipient of tonight.”

            “At the science center?”

            “Our circus will be of assistance to the lead scientist here, you’ll see. Now come along, we’d hate to keep our host waiting.”

            The brunet followed him up the steps to the main door which easily opened to reveal the pristine lobby. The further they ventured into the heart of the facility though, the darker the halls became. Ardyn sent a bit of magic on ahead, shrouding out some of the lights for the sake of ambiance. Never let it be said that he never went all out. They passed the stairwell to the observation room, its tiny lock light green. Good, Bethsidia was in place.

            Ardyn pushed open the double doors into the main testing room, its quick conversion from earlier in the afternoon remaining exactly as he’d left it. Four tiers of stands sat in a half circle around a ring drawn on the floor, nets and swinging rods hung from the ceiling, and Ardyn led him to a single chair before taking his place in the center.

            “Are we ready, Master Bethsidia?” Ardyn called, never quite taking his eyes off the boy in front of him.

            “We are, sir,” echoed the reply over a speaker.

            “Well then,” the Accursed purred. “Let us begin.”

            With a snap of his fingers, music began to sneak into the room and he let himself pull on his magic once again as he bowed, smirking a grin as the miasma enveloped him. He could hear his boy suck in a breath as he rose again, freshly clad in a black and plum colored masked ringmaster suit.

            “Hello, child,” he called, channeling all the drama and mystery he could muster. “It brings me great pride to have arranged tonight’s performance for our honored guest. I assure you, tonight shall be like no other night you have witnessed. Without further ado, may I welcome you to Izunia’s House of Daemons!”

            A swirl of miasma had imps standing around them, Ardyn’s thoughts and motions more than enough to get the little buggers to obey. _Spin, cartwheel, flip._ He watched as he conducted, noting the expression of awe and disbelief that filled young Michael’s face as he made the imps to dance with the music.

 _Yes_ , he thought. _Look on child. This, all this, is for you. Now bring me the Nagas, let them sway and entertain him tonight, for that is what_ I _as head demon wish._

          And so the show continued. Imps, Nagas, Flayers and Flans, demons of all sizes and shapes were made manifest to dance and perform at their master’s desires, and their master’s young charge watched them with ever-growing glee.

          At one point he stepped out of the ring to make room for the larger beasts to obey his command, moving to stand beside the child dwarfed by the dark beings around him for several more minutes.

          “Would the young master care to see a trapeze?” Ardyn asked, kneeling next to him. His child nodded eagerly. “As he wishes.”

          A sharp clap had some of the smaller beasts clambering up the poles to swing from the bars. Back and forth they went, one right after the other, then two, three, four at a time, flying overhead.

          Ardyn took part in the end. He conducted much as he had in the beginning, bringing the children of darkness to dance around them in circles as the music grew to its crashing end, whereupon he presented the boy a small box.

          “Eleven months,” Ardyn projected. “Eleven months have brought us to this point, and I would not see you lose the wonder that lights your eyes, little one. Accept this, and know that where you desire to go, the beauty of the night follows. It will keep you in your golden years for as long as I live, and once I am gone you will grow alongside the rest of the world.”

          The boy, _his_ boy, opened the present to reveal the black, purple, and gold signet ring.

          “House Izunia is not the house I was born to,” Ardyn continued. “But it is the one I have created for myself. I would share it with you, if you are willing.”

          The boy leveled a watery stare at the trinket before launching himself into the Accursed’s arms.

          “I’m from the Oracle’s bloodline,” he sniffled into Ardyn’s collar. “That doesn’t bother you?”

          “You were rejected from your line as much as I was from mine,” the ancient answered. “It is rather fitting that we should find solace in one another.”

          “Yeah,” the boy cried lamely, before hugging his neck once again.

He picked the boy up, dismissing the demons back to Bethsidia’s care with a wave as he carried his boy back to the car.

          “Hey, Ardyn?”

          “Yes, my child?”

          “Does this mean I can call you dad?”

          “Of course, my son.”

\--

            There was a rumor in the years of darkness that the Accursed had a general who marched through Insomnia with his demons. The glaives saw him as a young man who played with the flaming hellhound outside the citadel gates but suffered no burns, who walked past the Naga near the steps without fear, who came and went as he pleased without any harm.

            Some days he herded the demons away from humanity’s last bastion in the city, and that they followed without a struggle, almost as though they were happy to go. He cradled the imps and sang to the reapers, and earned the name Demon Whisperer.

            And they say, when King Noctis returned, and when the sun rose high once again, he wailed in the streets in mourning for the man he’d come to call father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Want to commission a story like Rylee? Its only 15 USD! Message me on Tumblr @TheChocoChick or @ChocoChickArt :)
> 
> Thanks for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Want to have a fic of your own? Leave me a comment and we'll talk!


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